The Higher Education Amendments that govern Title IV Federal Financial Assistance Programs state a student shall be entitled to receive federal student assistance benefits only if that student is maintaining progress in the course of study he/she is pursuing, according to the standards and practices of the institution. Quillen College of Medicine's Policy of Satisfactory Academic Progress requires a student to complete the medical curriculum by meeting both a qualitative (pass/fail) and a quantitative (work completed) requirement as prescribed by the Academic Administration and Quillen College of Medicine Promotions Committee .
All students must complete the curriculum for each year and receive a "Pass" score in all required courses before matriculating to the next year or graduation. Students also must complete the Commencement Objectives by the time of regular spring commencement during the sixth year following the first enrollment unless the date of first enrollment has been reset by action of the Promotions Committee.
The Student Promotions Committee makes the determination for Satisfactory Academic Progress. The committee is responsible for reviewing the progress of students at the end of each course or clerkship and at the end of an academic year. Continued enrollment, remedial work and/or repeat of one or more courses, must be approved by the Student Promotions Committee. The Quillen Office of Financial Services satisfactory academic progress standards mirrors the academic progress policies of the institution. A student who is found to not be making academic progress by the Student Promotions Committee is not eligible for federal financial aid. This rule may also apply to state, institutional, and private funds. The Director of Financial Services is notified of significant actions of the Student Promotions Committee for monitoring purposes to ensure compliance with Title IV regulations.
All Students
In general, the satisfactory academic progress policy above covers the qualitative measurements (courses completed) of a student's progress. There is also a quantitative measurement (time limit) for federal financial aid eligibility known as Pace of Progression. Students are allowed to receive aid for one and one-half times the normal length of their program. For example, if a full time student's degree program takes eight semesters to complete, the maximum number of semesters a student can receive aid is for twelve semesters.
Incompletes, Withdrawals & Repeats
Incomplete grades must be removed by the end of twelve months following the month in which the grade was received. Failure of a student to remove the incomplete within the time allowed will result an "incomplete" as a permanent grade. Aid will not be provided to a student who is only completing an incomplete grade. However, a student may receive aid for repeating a previously passed course only once with prior approval from the Student Promotions Committee.
Transfer Students
In rare occasions the Admissions Committee at Quillen may accept students who have attended another medical school. Transfer applicants must be 'in good standing' with, or eligible to return to their prior medical school. When admitted, their academic progress will be evaluated solely on work at Quillen.
Appeal Procedure
Since the Quillen Office of Financial Service's satisfactory academic progress policies mirrors the academic progression policies of the college, the Financial Aid appeal process is embedded into the college's appeal process. Meaning, a student who successfully appeals their academic progress at the college will automatically have their financial aid eligibility reinstated.
Services are available to help ensure a student's scholastic success; information about these services is available in the Student Affairs or Student Support Services offices.